Radio access technologies (RATs) that may be used in wireless telecommunications may include, among others, Global System for Mobile Communications (GSM), General Packet Radio Service (GPRS), Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (UMTS), Universal Terrestrial Radio Access Network (UTRAN), Long Term Evolution (LTE), Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA), and WiFi. In some metropolitan locations, the coverage areas for different types of RATs may overlap. Some wireless devices are equipped with multi-mode radios and/or include multiple radios. For example, a device may have both a GSM/GPRS interface and a UMTS interface. Such a device may be able to provide user services and coverage by choosing one of the RATs in a location where multiple RATs are available.
As used herein, the terms “device” or “wireless device” may refer to portable devices such as mobile telephones, personal digital assistants, handheld computers, laptop computers, tablet computers, or similar devices, but may also refer to devices that are not transportable, such as desktop computers, set-top boxes, network appliances, or similar devices capable of wireless telecommunication. The term “telecommunications component” may be used broadly herein to refer to wireless devices and/or to network elements that may or may not communicate wirelessly. For example, a telecommunications component may be a base station, an eNodeB, a relay, or a similar component that may have a wireless connection to a wireless device or may be a server or a similar component in a core network that has a wired connection to some other component capable of communicating wirelessly.